Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Program Frequently Asked Questions
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Federal Facilities Restoration and Reuse Office
Question:
Which of the first four rounds—1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995—of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) installations are listed on the Superfund National Priority List (NPL)? There are currently 34 BRAC installations listed on the NPL, which include the following:
State MA MA MA ME NH RI NJ NY NY NY MD PA PA PA FL FL TN IL UT UT AZ CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA AK OR BRAC Facility on the NPL FORT DEVENS MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY SOUTH WEYMOUTH NAVAL AIR STATION LORING AIR FORCE BASE PEASE AIR FORCE BASE DAVISVILLE NAVAL CONSTRUCTION BATTALION CENTER FORT DIX GRIFFISS AIR FORCE BASE PLATTSBURGH AIR FORCE BASE SENECA ARMY DEPOT FORT GEORGE G. MEADE LETTERKENNY ARMY DEPOT (PDO AREA) * LETTERKENNY ARMY DEPOT (SE AREA) * NAVAL AIR DEVELOPMENT CENTER - WARMINISTER HOMESTEAD AIR FORCE BASE USN AIR STATION CECIL FIELD MEMPHIS DEFENSE DEPOT SAVANNA ARMY DEPOT ACTIVITY OGDEN DEFENSE DEPOT TOOELE ARMY DEPOT (NORTH AREA) WILLIAMS AIR FORCE BASE ALAMEDA NAVAL AIR STATION CASTLE AIR FORCE BASE EL TORO MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FORT ORD GEORGE AIR FORCE BASE MARCH AIR FORCE BASE MATHER AIR FORCE BASE MCCLELLAN AIR FORCE BASE MOFFETT NAVAL AIR STATION NORTON AIR FORCE BASE SACRAMENTO ARMY DEPOT TREASURE ISLAND NAVAL STATION-HUNTERS POINT ANNEX ADAK NAVAL AIR STATION UMATILLA ARMY DEPOT DoD Service Army Army Navy Air Force Air Force Navy Army Air Force Air Force Army Army Army Army Navy Air Force Navy Defense Logistic Agency (DLA) Army DLA Army Air Force Navy Air Force Navy Army Air Force Air Force Air Force Air Force Navy Air Force Army Navy Navy Army
Answer:
EPA Region 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 10 10
*Although there are 35 NPL facilities listed above, only 34 BRAC facilities are on the NPL. Letterkenny Army Depot, PA is one BRAC installation; however it has two areas that are listed separately on the NPL.
Question: Answer:
Why is it taking so long to cleanup the first four rounds of BRAC installations? Extensive site cleanup work is being conducted. Many areas of contamination at these installations are the result of decades of Department of Defense (DoD) use and operation. Principle types of contaminants includes: heavy metals, solvents, volatile organic compounds, and military munitions. Many of these installations have contaminated ground water that can be extremely difficult to clean-up, in order to meet safe drinking water consumption levels, for several reasons: • Aquifers are complex structures. Aquifers can contain cracked and fractured rocks and other geological variations. These variations can act as nooks and crannies that hold contaminants or create additional pathways for contaminants to follow. This makes removing contaminants difficult. • Not all contaminants behave in the same way. Different contaminants act different in ground water. This makes them hard to locate and remove, complicating cleanup. Some do not mix with or dissolved readily in water. Some are heavier than water and sink to the bottom of an aquifer. Other contaminants are lighter than water and float on top, such as petroleum products like jet fuel and gasoline. • Locating the contamination can be difficult. The ability of technology to find contaminants in ground water is limited. Samples from ground water wells do not always provide enough information about the extent of contamination. • Technology has limitations. Treatment technologies are limited in their ability to cleanup an aquifer, even if the location of the contaminants is known. Frequently, ground water is cleaned by pumping it to the surface for treatment. After contaminants have been removed, the water is discharged back into the ground or a stream or river. Contaminants that cannot be pumped to the surface with water must be treated underground, making the cleanup more difficult, expensive, and time-consuming. For additional information and key documents on ground water, visit EPA’s web site: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/resources/gwdocs/
Question: Answer:
What is the relationship between BRAC installations and facilities on the NPL? A BRAC facility may or may not be on the Superfund NPL. From the previous four rounds, there are currently 34 BRAC installations on the NPL. Facilities on the NPL cover a wide range of industries and uses, and include some currently active and closed military installations. An installation’s cleanup status on the NPL will not change if it will be closed under the base realignment and closure program.
Question:
To ensure that cleanup remedies remain protective, what happens after a BRAC property has been cleaned up and transferred by a DoD Service? In accordance with EPA’s Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) requirements, if waste is left in place and the use of the property is restricted, then a review must be completed to determine if the remedy is protective of human health and the environment every five years.
Answer:
Question:
After cleanup, what types of land use restrictions may exist to prevent reuse and redevelopment on a BRAC installation? While the cleanup of an installation incorporates the reasonable anticipated future land use, and the cleanup remedies selected to perform the cleanup are made with future land uses in mind, there may be restrictions on specific activities or what can be built at a site because contamination is left in place. Such land use restrictions are called institutional controls and are unique to each site.
Answer:
Question:
Should those BRAC installations that have one or both environmental indicators (human exposures or ground water migration pathways) not under control be considered to pose a hazard to the surrounding area? No. For each BRAC installation on the NPL, all immediate threats have been addressed. It is important to note that the human exposure environmental indicator addresses both actual human exposure pathways, as well as potential exposures. The same is true for the ground water measure. Facilities are designated “not under control” until every potential exposure pathway has been addressed. For installations found in this category, one cannot assume that there are actual exposures occurring. Rather, a potential exposure pathway may need to be addressed or is in the process of being addressed (e.g., a ground water treatment or containment system is being installed, but it is not yet operational).
Answer:
Question: Answer:
Are BRAC sites eligible for EPA Brownfields grants? No, BRAC sites cannot receive Brownfield grant money from EPA.